The UK's County Tops. Jonny Muir

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      National Trust sign close to the start of the walk

      Did you Know?

      Famous native

      Labour politician Ernest Bevin (1881–1951), foreign secretary between 1945 and his death, was born in Winsford to the south of Dunkery Beacon. Orphaned at six years old, he worked as a farm labourer before moving to Bristol when he was 18.

      Interesting fact

      The longest of the UK’s long-distance footpaths, the 1014km South West Coast Path, starts (or ends) in Minehead and ends (or starts) on the shores of Poole Harbour in Dorset.

      Route

      Exit the car park to the W and cross the road. Follow the second of two bridleways on the left. Ascend the wide, stony path in a generally NNW direction to reach the large stone cairn and toposcope atop Dunkery Beacon. ‘Dunkery’ comes from the Old English dun (hill) and the Celtic creag (rocky place); when you reach the summit you’ll see what an appropriate name it is!

      Descent

      Return by the same route.

      Other routes

      A multitude of paths criss-cross Dunkery Hill, each giving a different ascent to Dunkery Beacon. The Macmillan Way West long-distance footpath visits the summit, while lengthy ascents can also be made from Exford and Luccombe.

      Walkers on the summit of Somerset

4 DORSET

      Lewesdon Hill 279m ST 4376 0123

Location	4km W of Beaminster
Start	Lay-by immediately N of Buck’s Head, off B3162 Bridport–Broadwindsor road, ST 4396 0054
OS map	Landranger 193 (Taunton & Lyme Regis), Explorer 116 (Lyme Regis & Bridport)
Difficulty	2
Enjoyment	***
Distance	0.6km (1 mile)
Ascent	50m
Time	30–40mins

      For whatever reason, Pilsdon Pen (277m) – a well-known summit 3km west of Lewesdon Hill – was long considered Dorset’s highest point. The debate is now closed: Lewesdon Hill is definitely higher, albeit by a mere 2m. The route described here, through a 200-year-old beech and oak woodland, is best walked in the spring, when the hill’s slopes are carpeted in masses of fragrant bluebells. As the flat top of Lewesdon Hill suggests, it was once the location of an Iron Age hillfort. Similarly, Pilsdon Pen, which is also well worth a visit, was the site of a Roman fort, as was Waddon Hill to the east of Lewesdon Hill.

      Bluebell-decked woods on Lewesdon Hill

      Did you Know?

      Famous native

      Tennis player Virginia Wade, who won the singles title at Wimbledon in 1977, was born in Bournemouth. She claimed two other Grand Slam titles during her professional career: the US Open in 1968 and the Australian Open in 1972.

      Interesting fact

      With an area of 14km², Poole Harbour lays claims to being the largest natural harbour in the world. Four rivers – the Corfe, the Frome, the Piddle and the Sherford – drain into it.

      Route

      Walk W along a single-track road towards Higher Brimley Coombe Farm. At the brow of the hill, go through a gate on the right to join a footpath leading onto Crabb’s Hill. Two paths breaking off to the left will soon be met. Follow the second route, which climbs through woodland, steeply at first, before the gradient eases and a National Trust signpost is reached. The way climbs steeply again, partly over a path of exposed tree routes, with a final sharp pull bringing the walker onto the summit plateau. The highest point of Lewesdon Hill, an unmarked grassy protrusion, is roughly half a dozen steps forward of the lip of the plateau.

      Descent

      Return by the same route.

      Woodland on Lewesdon Hill

5 SUSSEX

      Black Down 280m SU 9195 2963

Location	North Downs, 4km SSE of Haslemere
Start	Black Down National Trust car park, near Aldworth, SU 9209 3058
OS maps	Landrangers 186 (Aldershot & Guildford) and 197 (Chichester & the South Downs), Explorer 133 (Haslemere & Petersfield)
Difficulty	2
Enjoyment	***
Distance	3km (1.8 miles)
Ascent	30m
Time	30–45mins

      Perched on the west periphery of Sussex, Black Down is an area of heath and woodland, where tantalising views of the South Downs and Low Weald peep through trees. Black Down was the scene of a major air disaster in 1967 when all 37 people on board a flight bound for Gatwick died when the plane crashed on the hill’s southern slopes. There are numerous paths on Black Down, including one which follows the line of the Sussex border, making route-finding surprisingly tricky. The route described here, starting from close to Aldworth – the former home of the Victorian Poet Laureate Alfred Lord Tennyson – should make locating the summit simple.

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